In Pictures: America's Richest Families

Forbes' list of America's richest families includes the descendants of banking barons, media mavens--and one of the greatest retailers the world has ever known.

LUKE FRAZZA/AFP/Getty Images

Walton family

$90 billion

Walmart

Descendants of cut-rate retail pioneer Sam Walton (d. 1992). Oklahoma native bootstrapped his way from J.C. Penney clerk in 1940 to America's richest person in 1985. Early venture: Newport, Ark., five-and-dime store Benjamin Franklin opened in 1945. Lost lease five years later. With brother James launched general-store chain in Bentonville, Ark. in 1962; took public 1970. Today Walmart is the world's largest retailer: 8,000 stores, 2.1 million employees serve 200 million customers a week. Sales: $401 billion. Retail's royal family controls 40% of Walmart's shares.

AP Photo/Topeka Capital-Journal, Mike Burley

Koch Family

$40 billion

Koch Industries, Oxbow Corp., investments.

Four sons of Fred C. Koch, who invented method of converting heavy oil into gasoline. Each son inherited a stake in Koch Industries; Charles and David bought out William and Frederick for $1.1 billion in 1983. Company now America's second-largest private company by sales. Products range from fabrics to fertilizer. Charles and David each own 42%; worth considerably more than William and Frederick. William runs $3.7 billion (sales) energy conglomerate Oxbow Corporation; Frederick said to live in Europe.

Mars family

$35 billion

Mars Inc.

World's largest confectionary company still digesting gum maker Wrigley, acquired last year for $23 billion. Mars sales now exceed $30 billion. Alva Mars amused Polio-stricken son Frank (d. 1934) with lessons in chocolate making during the 1880s. Frank launched candy outfit out of kitchen in Tacoma, Wash in 1911. Frank's son Forrest (d. 1999) introduced M&Ms 1941; popularized malt-flavored nougat, chewy-sweet staple that figures into Milky Way, Snickers, 3 Musketeers. Forrest's three children inherited company when he died in 1999.

Jenny Fung/Reuters /Landov

Cargill/MacMillan family

$30 billion

Cargill

William Cargill started running grain elevators throughout the upper Midwest after the Civil War. Son-in-law John MacMillan took over Cargill in 1909; business now spans crops, poultry, meat and animal feed. Family owns 88% of firm, but no longer runs business; some members are on the board of directors. Sales: $116 billion in 2009, making it the largest private company in America by revenues. Company also a majority shareholder in fertilizer manufacturer Mosaic; stake worth almost $14 billion.

Pritzker family

$17 billion

Hyatt Hotels; Marmon

Descendants of A.N. Pritzker (d. 1986), who, with sons Jay (d. 1999) and Robert, built the hotel chain Hyatt and industrial conglomerate Marmon. Plan to divide control of empire among Jay's son, Tom, niece, Penny, and cousin, Nick, hit snag in 2001; family agreed to split fortune 11 ways, sparking legal action by Robert's two youngest children, Matthew and Liesel. Settlement: $1 billion. Empire now being dismantled. Family sold 60% of Marmon to Berkshire Hathaway for $4.5 billion. Also cashed out large Hyatt stake for $900 million in public offering in November.

AP Photo

Du Pont family

$15 billion

E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company

Descendants of Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours, French physiocrat who escaped Revolutionary Terror by immigrating to America in 1800. Son Eleuthere Irenee, a chemist's apprentice, founded gunpowder factory in Delaware 1802. Family dispute over control of firm in 1915 elevated Pierre S. du Pont II. World War I brought munitions contracts, dazzling growth. Pierre deployed mounting wealth via holding company Christiana Securities. Died childless in 1958; bulk of fortune passed to eight siblings. Family believed to collectively own 15% of du Pont.

Johnson family

$13 billion

Johnson & Johnson

Robert Wood Johnson founded Johnson & Johnson medical products business with two brothers in 1886. Son, Robert Jr., became company's chairman in 1932. He and his brother, J. Seward Johnson, each reportedly received one-third of JNJ shares when company went public in 1944. Seward's third wife, Barbara Piasecka Johnson, inherited 36 million shares after his death in 1983; today she is worth $2.8 billion. Robert Wood Johnson Jr.'s grandson, Robert Wood Johnson IV, is owner of the New York Jets professional football team.

AP Photo/Ziff Communications Company

Ziff family

$12 billion

Ziff-Davis Publishing, investments

Descendants of William Ziff Sr., co-founder of publishing outfit Ziff-Davis. Passed reins in 1953 to son William Jr. (d. 2006), who built a niche media empire out of now-iconic titles: PC Magazine, Car & Driver, Boating. Sold 95% of business to Forstmann Little for $1.4 billion in 1994, retired to Florida. Three sons founded Ziff Family Investments; today money spread across hedge funds, real estate, debt, equities, commodities. Family provided seed capital to hedge fund manager Daniel Och in 1994; took 10% stake. Och-Ziff public in 2007, shares down 60% since.

Bettmann/CORBIS

Dorrance family

$12 billion

Campbell Soup

Descendants of John T. Dorrance, chemical engineer who invented canning process for condensed soup that used half as much water, shaving production costs by a third. Fortune at time of his death in 1929: $150 million. Shares in Campbell Soup divvied up among his widow, five children. Today third generation owns 50% of empire; publicly traded food outfit also makes cookies (Pepperidge Farm), juice (V8). Annual sales: $7.6 billion. Resilient demand for cheap grub cheering investors: Shares down 4% since beginning of 2008; S&P 500 down 26% in same period.

Mellon family

$10 billion

Alcoa, Gulf Oil

Pittsburgh banker Thomas Mellon started T. Mellon & Sons' Bank in 1869. Sons Andrew, Richard, Thomas, James and their children started landmark companies, including Alcoa and Gulf Oil. Andrew Mellon became U.S. Secretary of the Treasury in 1921. In the largest
U.S. merger at the time, Gulf Oil was acquired by Standard Oil Co. of California for $13 billion in 1984 and was renamed Chevron. Mellon Financial Corp. merged with The Bank of New York in 2007. Richard Mellon's grandson, Richard Mellon Scaife, is worth $1.1 billion.

Corbis/Bettmann

Bass family

$10 billion

Oil investments

Four sons of oil baron Perry Richardson Bass (d. 2006). Perry inherited $11 million fortune from uncle Sid Richardson, who got rich trolling for oil in West Texas in the 1930s. Control of family investments passed to Perry's son Sid 1968. Other son Robert struck out on his own that same year; formed Oak Hill investment group. Oak Hill's current assets under management: $25 billion. Decades of philanthropy have seen family name plastered on buildings throughout the country: Bass Library at Yale, the Sid Richardson Museum and the Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth.

Carl Mydans/Time Life Pictures/Getty Images

Newhouse Family

$9 billion

Advance Publications

Sam Newhouse (d. 1979) created Advance Publications newspaper chain; sons Si and Donald continue to reign over publishing empire, though core areas of media business are faltering badly. Conde Nast magazine division has cut staff and closed several magazines in the last year, including Portfolio and Gourmet. One-third stake in Discovery Communications, which includes Discovery Channel and Animal Planet, has fared much better; shares up more than 100% in last year. Si's art collection includes Peter Paul Rubens, Johannes Lingelbach.

AP Photo/Journal Times, Mark Hertzberg

Johnson family

$9 billion

Franklin Resources

Rupert Johnson Sr. started Franklin Distributors mutual fund business in 1947. Son Charles took top spot in 1957; his half-brother Rupert Jr. joined in 1965. Expanded business into Franklin Resources in 1969; added Templeton Funds in 1992 and Fiduciary Trust in 2001. Assets under management fell more than $100 billion between Sept. 2008 and March 2009. Now manages $523.1 billion. Franklin Resources stock up 125% in past 12 months. Charles is chairman, Rupert Jr. vice chairman. Charles' son, Gregory, is chief exec.

UPI Photo/Bill Greenblatt/Newscom

Taylor family

$7 billion

Enterprise Rent-A-Car

Jack Crawford Taylor was a fighter pilot on aircraft carrier during WWII; became sales manager at a St. Louis Cadillac distributor. Started replacement car business in 1957, later named Enterprise Rent-A-Car. Big break in 1970s, when courts required insurance companies to pay for replacement auto rentals; Enterprise continues to focus on insurance claims instead of airport rentals. Fortune halved since 2008 because of problems in auto industry, lower private company valuations. Son Andrew is chief exec, daughter Jo Ann heads company foundation.

General Photographic Agency/Getty Images

Rockefeller

$7 billion

Standard Oil

Descendants of iconic capitalist John D. Rockefeller, who turned $4,000 investment in oil refining into Standard Oil, energy giant that fueled the American industrial revolution. Company carved up in landmark antitrust case 1911. Fortune funneled into philanthropy (Rockefeller University), real estate (Rockefeller Center), politics (Nelson Rockefeller became 41st vice president of the U.S.). Only living grandson David collects art. Family fortune hard to pinpoint because riches are shared by 150-plus heirs.

Evening Standard/Getty Images

Lauder Family

$7 billion

Estée Lauder (d. 2004) started company in 1946; business grew into cosmetics colossus that today includes labels like Clinique, Aveda, Bobbi Brown and La Mer. Revenues of $7.3 billion in last fiscal year, down 7% from 2008; stock up 95% in past 12 months. Sons Leonard and Ronald, along with grandchildren, own chunk of company stock worth about $3.5 billion.

Bettmann/CORBIS

Scripps family

$6.7 billion

The E.W. Scripps Company

Edward W. Scripps borrowed $10,000 from brothers to found Cleveland's "The Penny Press" 1878. Edward died on his yacht 1926. Son Robert died 12 years later, also aboard a yacht; value of the family's 24-paper empire at the time: more than $100 million. Expanded into radio, television stations. Public 1988. Last year, separated local media assets (E.W. Scripps) from national networks, Web operations (Scripps Networks Interactive). Family trust holds 30% stake in SNI worth $1.6 billion; descendants also believed to own sizable stake in Comcast.

Bettmann/Corbis

Bechtel family

$6 billion

Bechtel Corp.

Heirs to engineering giant Bechtel Corp. Warren A. Bechtel bought steam shovel, started railroad-grading company 1909. First contractor to use dump trucks. Three sons took over when Warren Sr. died 1933; oversaw flurry of oil pipeline projects, built Hoover Dam 1936. Stephen Bechtel Jr. became president 1960. Son Riley took over 1990; led Bechtel's seven-month effort to extinguish Kuwaiti oil fields set ablaze by retreating Iraqi troops. Sales in 2008: $31.4 billion. Riley and Stephen Jr. believed to collectively own 40%.

John Storey/Time Life Pictures/Getty Images

Fisher family

$5.5 billion

Gap Inc.

Children and widow of Gap co-founder Donald Fisher (d. 2009). He and wife Doris started jeans and music store in San Francisco 1969. Public seven years later. Acquired Banana Republic 1983. Launched Old Navy 1994; became first clothing brand to rack up $1 billion in sales in less than four years. Gap shares have compounded at 20% a year since late 1970s. Company now boasts 3,100 locations. Doris owns large contemporary art collection. Donald and Doris shifted control of fortune to three sons John, Robert, William 2004; John owns minority stake in Oakland A's baseball team.

Ryan McVay/Getty Images

Stryker Family

$5.2 billion

Stryker Corp.

Homer Stryker (d. 1980) created mobile hospital bed and founded medical supply Stryker Corp. in 1941. Son, Lee, died in plane crash 1976. Company went public in 1979; boasted $6.7 billion in 2008 revenue. Outfit now sells hospital beds, joint replacements, medical software, surgical cameras. Lee's children control more than 20% of the company. Ronda sits on board of directors.

Glowimages/Getty Images

Phipps

$5 billion

The Carnegie Company

Henry Phipps grew up poor in Pittsburgh. Parlayed small stake in cash-starved iron works company into lucrative partnership with steel magnate Andrew Carnegie. Opened family investment vehicle Bessemer Trust in 1907 to manage proceeds from sale of Carnegie Steel. Diverted ownership to children in 1911: "It is my desire that neither the stock nor the bonds of the Company shall pass out of my family." Died in 1930. Value of his estate: perhaps $600 million. Today Bessemer oversees $50 billion in assets; throws off $30 million to $50 million a year in dividends.